


A Promise Repaid

by escalove (starryeyedsea)



Category: Eureka Seven
Genre: Gen, Yuletide, challenge:Yuletide 2008, recipient:Lucathia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-12-24
Updated: 2009-12-24
Packaged: 2017-10-04 11:56:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,099
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29758
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starryeyedsea/pseuds/escalove
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dominic returns to Bell Forest</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Promise Repaid

**Author's Note:**

> Written for: Lucathia in the Yuletide 2008 Challenge  
> Set post series during a made up Holiday tradition. Tried to deal with Dominic being honest with Axel and forming a real relationship there. Hope you enjoy.

Dominic sighed as he looked down at the address just one more time. It was different from before, but it was still the same town as before. All dreary and in the middle of nowhere. The last time he had come here, he had ended up in tears and a mistuned bike. This time he had come by car and he hoped that he wouldn't let his feelings get the best of him this time.

He didn't know exactly why he had come, and when he had tried to explain to Anemone why he was visiting Axel Thurston, she gave him a weird almost perturbed looked.

"Why are you going to see him, Dominic?" she asked in her usual manner, "he isn't _your_ grandfather."

He didn't have an answer to that really. There was really know reason to be calling on Axel Thurston, the war and Dominic's involvement in the military were over. He no longer needed to research Renton or Adrock. But all the same he felt that he needed to come. He remembered Axel's invitation from the last time, and at this time of year, Dominic felt that he needed to pay the man a visit.

So there he was, in the tiny town of Bell Forest, and even though this was not his first time there, he had managed to get lost twice. How in the world was he supposed to know which way West was. The whole directional system seemed so arbitrary to him.

But he had gotten there. And now he stood outside the door for what was probably 25 minutes. A few times he walked further, but then he would always come back.

Finally he attempted to swallow and cast aside his uneasiness, and though he wasn't entirely successful he did gather enough courage to approach the front door.

He knocked (not very loudly) and waited with an almost bated breath. He had no idea what he was going to say to the man. Or what he would think the man would say back to them. Dominic was walking into the unknown, which granted he was used to with Anemone and all, but with Anemone he had some clues to what he was going to get. This was different and slightly awkward.

He didn't hear anything from inside so he knocked again, thinking that maybe his earlier knocking had not actually been loud enough. He heard at this a few sounds from inside the house, although they were a bit muffled and he couldn't know what it was, but someone was home.

It was a few more minutes until the door finally opened, but there was no one there. He looked in and just as he was about to take a step in he heard the sound of someone clearing their throat. He froze.

"Who are you?"

Dominic suddenly looked down. There at the doorway stood three children, two boys and a girl. They did not look related although he could tell by their proximity to each other that they were probably close. But they were strange. They had not been there on his last visit and he wondered if the address that he had gotten had been wrong.

"Um I'm Dominic Sorel," he said, " I am here to see Axel Thurston."

"Grandpa is out back," the girl said, "and he's busy." Her voice sounded almost like a young Anemone, Dominic thought, it had that same high pitch tone and edge to it.

_Grandpa?!_ Dominic was a bit taken aback, he didn't think Axel had any living grandchildren other then Renton.

"May I see him?" Dominic asked as politely as he could, he didn't much know about what to do with children.

The girl opened her mouth to reply again, but one fo the boys (the one who seemed to be the eldest) cut in before she could.

"Be quiet, Maeter," he said, and the girl, Maeter, looked at him in mock scorn. The boy ignored the sister and looked straight at Dominic, who suddenly felt like he had been put under a microscope for examination.

"You can come in," he said, "but don't try anything funny."

Dominic did not know what he meant by funny, but he walked stepped into the home and followed the three children to a small breakfast nook in the back of the house.

"You sit here," the oldest boy said, "we'll go get Grandpa."

Dominic simply nodded, not quite believing that he was letting himself be ordered around by a couple of kids who could be no older than twelve at most. The three scurried out the back door which was right by the entrance to the small kitchen, leaving Dominic alone in silence.

He used this time to collect himself. He came by to visit and to talk, and even though the presence of the kids was a bit weird, Dominic knew that there were much more mystifying things out in the world then those three.

It wasn't long before the kids were back, and they were pulling Axel Thurston in tow.

"Grandpa, this strange man came by looking for you."

Dominic had been sitting at the table but at the odd introduction he stood up and quickly bowed his head.

"Sorry to come here without notice," he said, and just barely resisted the urge to scratch the back of his head, a certain mental tick that he did whenever he was nervous or felt out of place.

"Ah you were that man from before," Axel said and gave a slight smile, "Dominic, right? You're Renton's friend."

The three kids suddenly stared at Dominic in awe, except for the eldest who looked at Dominic suspiciously.

"You knew Renton?" the youngest boy asked.

Dominic nodded.

"How?" Maeter asked, "we have never seen you before."

Dominic almost went white right there. These three kids had known Renton, and they had never heard of him.

"Uh...We meet way back in..."

"They meet in Saosilne," Axel cut in.

Dominic sighed. Thankfully, Axel remembered a bit from the first time he had met him. The three kids seemed to back down at that but still eyed him wearily.

"So, Dominic, this is the second time around, isn't it. Well Renton isn't here if you're looking for him," Axel said gruffly.

"Oh, I know," Dominic said, knowing full well that Renton Thurston had not been seen in six months, "Last time, you said I was always welcome, so I came. It is close to the holidays after all."

"Well then, by all means you're welcome," Axel said, "do you have something for me to fix this time?"

"No, sir," Dominic said, "I am learning to do that for myself."

"Well then you've grown up, just like my Renton," Axel said, "why don't we make some tea, it is getting cold outside, and it seems my grandchildren are getting antsy."

"Your grandchildren, sir?"

"Actually my great grandchildren, they belong to Renton," Axel said.

Dominic looked at the children in surprise. There was no way thatÉ

"Renton married our Mama!" Maeter cried.

_Oh she must mean Eureka,_ he thought.

"Yes," Axel continued, "and I am keeping them here until Renton comes back with that girl."

Dominic wanted to know how they could possibly sure that Renton was coming back, he hadn't been seen since they disappeared eight months before, leaving only carvings on the moon. But he said nothing, rather he accepted the offer for tea, and soon helped the children set the places at the table.

When they sat down with the tea, and the children were munching away at some baked cookies, Dominic became silent. He didn't know how to proceed without giving himself away. Could he really tell this man the truth after so long?

"So, Dominic," Axel said, obviously not satisfied with the silence, "do you have a family to spend time with?"

"Oh not really," Dominic said, "they died back in the war. Not the last one, the one before. But I do have someone..."

He thought of Anemone who was still recovering mentally from the abuse that had come to her from Dewey, there were better days then others. And he did have an offer from Captain Jurgens to spend some of the festival days with him and Dewey's children.

Suddenly the eldest child, whom had been introduced during the cooking time as Maurice, widened his eyes.

"You're that guy!" he said suddenly, and everyone at the table turned to him.

"What?" Dominic asked.

"You were that guy who fell from the sky! With that girl!" Maurice cried.

Dominic suddenly blushed from the memory. How had the kid known that.

"That's right!" Maeter said, "we were there, we saw you!"

Now Dominic was really blushing, why had those kids...?

Axel was now looking at Dominic with interest.

"I see," he said, "so you have a family of your own."

"Well not yet," Dominic said, "there are complications."

But he was beginning to feel guilt. He felt dishonest, and even though he knew that this harkened back to his last trip to Bell Forest it was even higher now.

"You know..."

"It occurs to me the last time you were here, we didn't have time to talk," Axel said, "I would like to hear more about how you knew Renton. And how well you took care of him."

Dominic now felt caught. He couldn't lie, not anymore. He was glad for a moment that Anemone was not there, because she would have been laughing at him had she seen him like this.

"Well you see..."

And suddenly the truth came out. He told Axel and the children about Anemone, and Dewey, and the one time that he had actually met and talked with Renton. He admitted that he had come the first time with his bike to gather information and finally he explained his defection.

He was almost out of breath, and his cheeks were red from shame and embarrassment.

No one said anything for one long moment.

Maurice was the first to speak up.

"You couldn't read maps?" Maurice asked, and Dominic couldn't figure out why that out of all the things he had said would draw their attention.

"Well, it isn't that I can't read..." Dominic said.

"You're an idiot," Maurice replied.

"Yeah a big idiot," Maeter echoed.

Axel was silent, and Dominic found himself more worried about his reaction. Him who had been so kind to him the last time and who had honestly thought he was a friend of Renton's.

"Well it seems you are just as much an idiot as my grandson," Axel finally said, "you should have told me that when you first met me."

"I wanted to," Dominic said, "but..."

"Well it is all in the past, I am not going to take back my offer," he said, "and it seemed you did good in the end."

Dominic wasn't sure that was enough but at least he wasn't being thrown out, but he suddenly felt like he couldn't stay longer.

"I better be going," Dominic said, "I am sorry that I caused you so much trouble."

He stood and gave another small bow, and began to make his way to the front door. He barely made it through the front door when he felt a hand come over his shoulder.

"Who gave you permission to leave," Axel said.

"I..."

"You came for a proper visit, and dog gone it you are going to get one," Axel said.

"But, I lied," Dominic replied.

"I told you that that was in the past," Axel said, "but if you want to make up for it, there is one thing you can do."

"What?"

"The next time, you need to come when Renton is here," Axel said, "and bring that girl of yours with you. And for now you can stay for dinner, it is hard for an old man like me to keep up with these kids on my own."

Despite himself, Dominic felt the tears begin to form. Now he really felt like an idiot. But he nodded and began to follow Axel back towards the inside.

Axel just smiled knowingly as he lead Dominic inside.

"I am very blessed," he said, and Dominic looked at him strangely.

"Why?"

"There was a time when all my family left me," Axel said, "but now it is growing again."

And Dominic instantly turned and wiped his eyes. Anemone wouldn't blame him for this, he thought, after all what kind of person wouldn't be touched by a sentiment like that.

He was an idiot after all.


End file.
